A Short Guide to Customs Clearance

The government designated authority that implements policies related to export and import, facilitate movement of cargo and people, and collect customs either in or out of the country is known as the customs department. Fortunately, instead of directly dealing with a customs broker,  you can partner with a freight forwarder to move shipment forward.

The Area of Operation

The custom department has offices at every border gateway that are particularly the entry and the exit point for people, as well as cargo moving in and out of a country. The custom agency has the power to arrest someone or confiscate their goods. They have powers similar to that of the police department.

Trade and Customs Logistics

Every country is known to publish a policy of Foreign Trade that triggers the condition under which the products are exported or imported to different locations. The customs department implements the policy under the customs tariffs, rules, and regulation.

Import to some country might be allowed without any charges. Some good requires license to be transported. There are some items which have been banned from being imported and are now allowed to enter a specific country.
The items that are imported into the country need to be cleared by the customs department. This includes the items which are being brought in as personal products. The items that are being used by trade or business establishment including the defense or governmental agencies will also be checked. The essential stipulated duty has to be paid before the goods are released by the customs.

When a cargo is imported into the country from any location, it is generally stored in the custom bonded area. This warehouse is under the jurisdiction of the customs department until is cleared by them.

Custom and Import Clearance

Cargo shipping companies such as 20Cubes that coordinate with the international transportation companies also offer customer clearance service to the clients. The activity is known as brokerage. Custom clearance work includes preparation, as well as submission of the documents needed to facilitate the import or export in the country. They also have to represent the clients during the examination by the customs department, pay the duty, and assess the work. As a matter of fact, the freight custom clearance work also comprise of co-taking the delivery of the freight from the customer after the clearance procedure with the documents.
Some of the documents needed for customs clearance are as follows,

Export Documentation: This consists of the purchase order from the buyer, packing list, sales invoice, airway bill, shipping bill, certificate of origin, and certain documents specified by the financial institutions or the regulations of the importing country.

Import Documentation: This consists of the purchase order, sales invoice, bill of entry, airway bill, packing list, certificate of origin, and some other documents that are needed by the buyer or the financial institution.
The custom agent makes the shipping bill documents in the house to submit. However, the rest of the documents are secured from the clients. Preparation of the shipping bill includes classification of the cargo. The customs agents also known as the customs broker are registered and licensed by the customs department to operate.